Reconcile
by Aroissa
Summary: A/U It's been 14 years since it happened. James Potter could still hear those 5 words that have haunted him for those long 14 years. Taken by Voldemort. Presumed Dead. James and Lily never had another kid. They didn't want to condemn another child to the same fate. Either way, no matter what they did, James and Lily Potter would never see their son again. Or so they thought...
1. Prologue

_**Prologue**_

James Potter could tell you everything you need to know about regret. He could tell you about the sinking dread that you feel in your stomach when you first discover that something has gone wrong. He could describe the hopelessness that slowly fills your heart when you realize that there is nothing anyone can do to change what happened. He could depict the self hatred that sets in when you _know_ that **you** could have done something to change it.

Lily Potter could tell you everything you need to know about guilt. She could share the disbelief that fills you when you first hear what has happened. She could inform you about the horrible self-loathing that suffuses through your body when you realize that it was **your** fault that it happened. She could explain to you the wretched despair that settles in your bones when you know that _nothing_ can change it.

* * *

 **James' PoV**

14 years.

14 _years_ since it happened.

 _Harry would have been 15 tomorrow._

James sighed and leaned back in the red armchair.

He could still remember that night perfectly. He could remember the dread that settled in his stomach when he woke up to find Lily. His beautiful Lily, curled up beside an empty crib weeping in despair.

He could still hear Albus Dumbledore telling him the words. Those 5 words that have haunted him for 14 years.

 _ **Taken by Voldemort. Presumed dead.**_

James shut his eyes tightly. How ignorant they had been, to think that 2 wizards and a few wards could keep out Voldemort.

Of course, the whole Order believed that Harry would have been safe. No one ever thought that Voldemort would attack on Harry's first birthday. No one except for Sirius Black.

James' best friend, brother in all but blood, and godfather of his son, volunteered to guard Harry that night. Sirius said that he could stay by Harry's crib as Padfoot, but Lily and James waved him off. They told him that it wouldn't be necessary.

How wrong they were.

James knew that Sirius felt guilty. Hell, they all felt guilty. That was why James and Lily never had another kid. They didn't want to condemn another child to the same fate.

Either way, no matter what they did, James and Lily Potter couldn't bring their son back.

 _ **Or so they thought.**_

* * *

 **A/N: This is a pilot for this new story that I have come up with. If it gets a good response I will be sure to continue it. Please fill free to ask questions or give suggestions in reviews. I will answer them the best I can.**

 **Thanks for your support.**

 **-Aroissa**


	2. Ch 1--Dreams

_**Chapter I: Dreams**_

 _ **James' PoV**_

James Potter was having a terrible day. Of course, he would be a despicable human being for him to be happy on this day. It was, in fact, the anniversary of his son's death. 14 years have not lessened the pain in the slightest. He didn't think that any amount of time would take away the heartache.

James and Lily always acted happy around other people. But when they were alone, with nothing other than their thoughts, they grieved for the loss of their only child.

This was the one day a year when they didn't bother to act happy. James and Lily would both take off work and they would stay in Harry's old nursery. All they would do is sit and grieve for their son, then wake up the next day, ready to act happy again.

Unfortunately, James was called into work for an emergency. According to the Auror department, there was high death eater activity around the manor. They told him that there wasn't anyone else available for the job.

James wanted to curse and scream at the ministry for hours. But then he realized that it wouldn't help his son. Though, sitting in a room all day wouldn't either.

No, nothing could help Harry now. The only thing James could do for his son now is avenge him.

And that is precisely what he planned to do.

* * *

When James got to the Auror Department he was greeted by Tonks and Sirius.

When he walked through the door, Tonks immediately bounced over to him, a large grin visible on her face.

"James! James! We get to go on a raid! It's at Kadnar Manor!"

Sirius finally caught up to her, panting slightly.

"I'm afraid Nymphie here is a little over excited for her first raid." He said dryly, resting his elbow on her head.

Tonks shook him off.

"Don't call me Nymphie!" She snapped. Her hair, which before was a bubble gum pink that reached just past her chin, turned to a spiky dark red.

"Alright Nymphie, well why don't you go flirt with Remus while I talk to Jamsie here."

Tonks' eyes darkened (literally) during the nickname but lit up when Remus was mentioned. James snickered when she practically skipped over to where Remus was.

Sirius turned to James and the smirk immediately vanished from his face.

"I'm sorry James. I told them not to call you…"

"Sirius..."

"...I told them to get some other ministry employee, but they wouldn't listen…"

"Sirius."

"I told them that we would be fine without you but…"

"Padfoot!" James shouted, his patience gone.

Sirius' eyes snapped up to meet his. James took a deep breath and sighed, effectively calming himself down.

He then said carefully, "Mr. Prongs would like to remind Mr. Padfoot that he does not like Mr. Padfoot apologizing for things that he had no control over."

Sirius sighed. "Ok Prongs." He said smiling somewhat grimly.

"Now tell me about this raid."

* * *

"Left squad take initiative." Scrimgeour's voice broke through the speaker clipped to James' belt.

He was currently in the yard of Kadnar manor. Concealed in the bushes next to the front door. James could see Sirius from where he was at. He was slinking around the house as Padfoot, trying to determine whether anyone was inside.

Sirius caught his eye and shook his head once: a sign meaning that no one alive was inside.

James reported to Scrimgeour and cautiously stepped to the doorway.

Kadnar manor certainly wasn't as extravagant as some other death eater's houses. It was a stone brick building, a little bit bigger than your average house. It had Ivy growing on the walls and all of the windows were boarded shut, except for one on the top floor. To James, it looked more like a prison than a home.

When James finally stepped through the door, he was immediately overwhelmed by the smell. He hurriedly cast a bubble head charm and told the others to do the same.

Sirius, who was now in human form, was right behind James as he stepped into the entryway.

It looked like a regular death eater house on the inside. Dark artefacts, portraits of ancestors that they hurriedly silenced, and of course your average dark wizard furniture-ranging from side tables with troll legs to house elf heads on the walls.

However, nothing was amiss, until they stepped into the living room.

The first thing that anyone noticed was the dead bodies in the middle of the floor. James stepped closer and saw that the bodies were of Aline and Dane Kadnar.

"Murdered?" Sirius asked from behind him.

James took a shaky breath and nodded, "Probably."

He looked closer at the Kadnars and saw that they must have been killed by the killing curse, as there were no visible fatal wounds.

There was also a dark mark carved into the coffee table next to them.

"Voldemort did this then?" Sirius gestured toward the table.

James nodded, his throat was too dry to speak. Why would Voldemort do this to some of his most faithful death eaters?

James finally sent Tonks and Kingsley to investigate the bodies while Sirius and James went upstairs. They checked every room and nothing was out of order, until the last room they checked.

All down the side of the door there were locks. There must have been at least 12 or 13 of them. James could also detect various arrays of spells. But they seemed to be trying to keep something, or someone, in not out.

James quickly unlocked the door and stepped inside with Sirius. The room was small, barely big enough to be considered a bedroom. There was a small bed in the corner of the room. On one wall there were old quidditch posters that seemed to be slashed through with a knife. James crossed over to them and realized that they were held up by permanent sticking charms. Someone must have tried to get rid of them unsuccessfully. Nothing else was in the room. Overall, it looked like a child's bedroom.

Sirius stood next to the open window, looking out. "You think the kid got out of here?"

James sighed. "Looks like it." He gazed out of the window. All he could see was the thick forest that sat to the east of the house. " I hope so."

* * *

James was exhausted when he got home. All he wanted to do was sleep but he couldn't stop thinking about the raid. The Kadnars murdered by their own kind? It didn't make sense. Neither did the Kid's room. The Kadnars didn't have have any kids that he, or anyone at the ministry, knew of. He only hoped that the kid was safe, wherever they were.

James strolled into his and Lily's bedroom and saw that she was already asleep. He kissed her forehead and laid down beside her.

Finally he let sleep come to him.

* * *

James was in his living room.

He found himself lying on the floor next to their burgundy colored couch. He couldn't remember how he'd gotten there…

...or how he woke up.

James looked around trying to seek out something that would tell him how he got there, but everything was in place. From the gryffin engraved chandelier, to the spell books on the slightly worn wooden shelves. The dark red curtains and rug to the pictures on the fireplace mantle. Everything was where it should be.

So then… hang on!

James' eyes zeroed in on the gold picture frames. Many of them displayed him and Lily. But with them was a boy. He had messy black hair and bright green eyes. The pictures ranged in age. Some showed a stubby-fingered toddler grinning up at him. Others showed a teenager sporting round wire-framed glasses. The boy was smiling in all of the pictures.

His smile looked so much like Lily's…

James' breath caught in his throat. So this was Harry! _I must be dreaming._ He thought, gazing at the pictures in wonder. _This is what it could have been like._ He watched Harry zoom around on a broom after the snitch. He was wearing Gryffindor quidditch robes.

 _If only Harry was still alive…_

A soft giggle came from behind him. James turned on the spot and came face to face with a child.

He looked to be about 3 or 4 years old, with unruly, black hair and big, emerald eyes.

Strangest of all, the boy seemed to have a sort of transparent hue around him. Like he was a ghost...but not quite.

James felt like he couldn't breath. _Was this Harry's ghost in front of him?_ But no, it couldn't have been. Ghosts appear the age that they die at. Surely, death eaters wouldn't keep Harry alive for a few years just to kill him?

James reached out to cup his son's chin but his hand passed right through him.

Harry suddenly giggled and pranced toward the door. He turned to look at James once and cocked his head to the side, like he was asking James to follow, and then stepped through the door.

All James could do was run after him.

* * *

They traveled down a dirt trail that wound through scraggly trees. James could barely see in front of him. He had to practically run in order to keep sight of his son. The entire way down, James tripped and stumbled after Harry, calling his name, desperately trying to reach his son.

* * *

Harry led him to a lake.

The moonlight illuminated the surface of the water, casting the mist above it a silvery white.

They stopped at the edge of the water. James reached out to his son again, but Harry moved away.

He suddenly pointed towards James' left, a little further down the bank of the water.

James followed his gaze and saw nothing. He turned back to his son but Harry was gone. Nothing could prove that Harry was ever there.

James took a shaky breath and turned back to where Harry pointed. He knew that his son was there. He could feel it. Ghost, or not, Harry was there, with him...and he wanted something.

James walked toward the spot that Harry pointed to. He suddenly stopped short. On the bank of the water, there was a boy. He looked to be around 14 or 15 years old. James knelt down next to the boy.

He had messy jet black hair, much like James'. His cheekbones also looked strikingly similar. Though, his nose and eyes looked like Lily's.

James breathed in sharply. _Harry would be 15._ James shuddered. _If this boy had green eyes..._

The boy suddenly groaned softly and opened his eyes. They were green. Bright emerald green. Just like Lily's.

The boy suddenly spoke. "What..? Who..?" He stuttered, unsuccessfully trying to sit up.

James tensed. He felt like he couldn't breath.d "What's your name?"

The boy blinked. "Harry." He said before he passed out again.

* * *

James woke up gasping for breath.

He could vaguely hear Lily calling his name, but he didn't respond. He hurriedly pulled on his cloak and trainers and practically ran out of the door. Lily ran after him in an attempt to stop him, but it was in vain.

James ran down the same trail that the ghost Harry led him down. He arrived at the lake and immediately stumbled toward the bank. He could see the mist, glowing silver, like in the dream. He could feel Lily next to him, but none of it mattered.

The only thing that mattered was Harry.

James stepped toward the spot where he had found his son. He wanted to hope, cry, scream all at the same time. _Please let Harry be there. Please let him have a second chance._

James stepped closer, his heart beating hard in his chest. He peered around the bush and…

...Harry was there.

James sighed in relief and quickly dropped to his knees, next to his son. He tentatively brushed Harry's hair from his eyes. _Harry was_ _ **here**_. _Harry was with him._

Lily dropped down next to James. Tears clouded her green eyes. "I...Is that..?" James nodded, still stroking Harry's hair. "It's Harry, Lily." He said, releasing a sob. "It's our son."

No longer willing to control his emotions, James let the tears fall, still clutching his family.

* * *

 ** _Lily's PoV_**

They eventually made their way back to their small cottage. James had harry clutched in his arms while Lily held her son's hand.

On the way back, James told Lily about his dream. Lily had no reason to doubt him. She knew (maybe mother's instinct) that is was her son as soon as she saw him.

Her son.

Lily still couldn't believe it: 14 years had gone by and now Lily was with her son again. She had always dreamed of having a child. Even when she was younger, she always wanted to have a child and teach them about the world. Lily never wanted to believe that Harry was dead. She never wanted to accept the fact that her only child was forever gone from the world.

And now he was here…

* * *

When they got back to their house, James set Harry on the couch and charmed the lights to turn on.

Lily glanced at her son and started, the blood draining from her face.

"James!" She shrieked, running to Harry.

James glanced over at Harry and blanched, running over.

There was so much blood. Harry seemed to have been covered in it. He had cuts on his arms and legs, along with old bruises. There was also a nasty laceration on his forehead.

"How did..? What..? Lily..?"

"It was dark." She said uncertainly. "We were shocked. Quickly James! Get everything from my medicine cupboard! Harry could die if we don't do something!"

* * *

 **A/N: I want to thank everyone for the support that they have had on this story. Thank you for the reviews and even just the follows on this story. I really appreciate it. I plan to continue this story and post chapters regularly. Tell me what you liked/disliked about this chapter. I'm willing to answer any questions as well.**

 **Thanks again.**

 **-Aroissa**


	3. Ch 2--Healing

_**Chapter 2: Healing**_

 _ **Lily's PoV**_

Lily sat back on her heels and sighed. After James had gotten her the healer's items, she had worked tirelessly, trying to heal her son. After roughly two hours of work, she had managed to have Harry in some stable condition.

Lily gazed at her son. Harry's forehead was covered in a bandage. The cuts were still visible on his arms, but at least the bruises were gone. No matter how Harry looked, Lily didn't think that she had ever seen someone so beautiful.

She stroked his freshly washed hair as James knelt beside her.

"How is he?" He asked tentatively, grabbing Harry's hand.

"He will be fine." She answered honestly.

Lily clutched James' shoulder. "He looks so much like you."

James glanced at her and smiled. "He has your eyes. Bright beautiful green eyes." He smiled again when Lily blushed.

They sat in silence for a few moments, gazing at their unresponsive son.

James suddenly stood up. "I need to tell Padfoot and Moony...and Dumbledore."

Lily stood up next to him. She clutched his arm. "Do you think that's wise?" "I mean…" She added hastily when she saw the look he gave her. "What if they don't believe us?" James suddenly looked uncertain. "They will. They have to."

* * *

 _ **James' PoV**_

Half an hour later, they had finished their three letters and sent them off. James could only hope that Dumbledore, Sirius, and Remus would believe them.

Now, James and Lily sat on their burgundy couch, anxiously waiting until someone arrived.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, Albus Dumbledore stepped through the fireplace, shaking soot from his hat. His normal twinkling eyes, looked more grave than usual.

"James. Lily." He said, nodding to each of them. "What is this I hear of young Harry?"

James stood up. "He's here, Albus. We know it's him."

Albus merely raised an eyebrow. "Do you?"

"We're his parents, Albus." Lily pleaded. "Of course we know it's him."

Albus sighed and crossed over to Harry's unresponsive form. "Perhaps a test would be in order."

Suddenly, Sirius and Remus strolled out of the floo.

"James, what do you mean..? Harry..?" Sirius stopped short. He stood in the doorway with Remus behind him, staring at the unresponsive Harry.

Remus was pale. "I..Is that?" Lily nodded.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Perhaps we should get on with the test."

James turned back to Albus. "Yes...of course."

Lily hurriedly filled them in, while James helped Albus with the test. They all gathered around the couch where Harry was situated. Dumbledore handed James a small knife. "We're going to need some of the boy's blood, James. Just a few drops." James turned pale. _How could he hurt his son, when he had just gotten him back?_

Lily put her hand on his shoulder. "J..Just a few drops, dear." She said, her voice unnaturally high. "I'll heal it up in no time."

James nodded and slowly shifted to Harry. He took his son's hand a gently ran the knife over his palm. He held his breath when a few drops of blood dripped onto the magical parchment that Albus was holding. Lily quickly cast a healing spell and wrapped her son's hand in a bandage for good measure.

Albus' eyes were twinkling as he cast the final spell over the parchment. Everyone crowded around as he set the parchment down on their side table.

The parchment read:

 _ **Harry James Potter**_

 _ **Son of Lily and James Potter**_

Lily and James immediately clung to each other, sobbing in joy. Lily buried her head in James' shoulder. Her eyes were filled with tears but James thought she had the most radiant smile on her face.

"He's here James." She wept. "He's really here."

James clung to her, rubbing her back. "I know, Lily flower. I know."

James let go of Lily, who instantly clasped to Remus, shaking in tears of joy. He turned just as Sirius practically tackled him in a bear hug. "Hear that Prongs? We'll have to get him a broom. I call him being on my team for our first game." James chuckled. "Alright Padfoot."

James turned to Remus, who held out his hand to shake. James shook his head amusingly. "None of that, Moony." James said as he pulled him into a hug. Remus merely smiled. "Congratulations, Prongs."

The twinkling eyes of Albus Dumbledore watched all of this with a cheerful smile on his face.

* * *

It had been a few days since Albus had visited. Sirius and Remus had visited often to check on Harry, yet he still hadn't woken up. James was starting to get anxious.

Lily was washing the dishes as James paced back and forth across their dining room.

"What are we supposed to do, Lily?" James said dejectedly. "We weren't there for him, for almost his whole childhood. What am I even supposed to say to him?"

Lily sighed and quickly waved her wand. The remaining dishes swiftly floated into cupboards, stacking themselves neatly. She crossed over to James and put her hand on his shoulder, rubbing comforting circles on his back.

"We can't know for sure." She smiled slightly. "The only thing we can do now is make sure he has the parents that he deserves. We can't make the same mistake again."

James sighed and relaxed. The tension left his body. He turned to face his wife, grinning broadly. "Well, first we need a room where Harry can stay. Let's go to Diagon Alley, or Hogsmeade. I'm sure we can find everything we need there."

Lily laughed and took his hands in hers. "And you know what Harry is interested in?"

James merely grinned. "Of course." He said taking a piece of folded parchment out of his pocket. "I found this in his cloak."

Lily glanced at it and sighed. It was a quidditch poster. "You better call Sirius and Remus." She said dryly.

"They're going to want to help you pick out the broom."

* * *

 _ **Lily's PoV**_

Lily and the remaining Marauders spent the rest of the day bustling into, and out of, wizarding shops. They bought everything that they thought Harry would need.

James and Sirius spent at least an hour in Quality Quidditch Supplies, trying to decide which broom to buy. They eventually decided on a Firebolt, which, according to Sirius, was the fastest broom on the market.

Lily spent a good amount of time in Madam Malkin's and a few muggle clothes stores, which irritated Sirius and James.

Remus also wanted to get Harry some books. (Which made Lily delighted and added to James and Sirius' annoyance.)

Eventually, they apparated back to their cottage. They all collapsed onto the sofas in exhaustion, too worn out to move. All in all, it was a very successful trip, or at least Lily thought so, as she finally closed her eyes and succumbed to sleep.

* * *

Lily gradually woke up, eventually realizing that she must have fallen asleep on the sofa. She looked around and saw that Remus was on the couch opposite to her. James and Sirius were asleep on the floor. Harry was no longer dead to the world on the couch. Lily remembered that James had moved him to his new room. She smiled and dragged herself from the sofa. _Hopefully, Harry would like his new home._

Lily wasn't worried about when Harry woke up. In fact, she couldn't wait to meet her son. A small part of her realized that he might be angry with them. After all, they weren't there for most of his childhood. Lily could only hope that Harry would forgive her and James. If he did, maybe it could help her, and James, to forgive themselves.

Lily had realized, eventually, that Harry's kidnapping (and supposed death) was not entirely her and James' fault. She knew that Peter, (the name still left a bad taste in her mouth) was the one responsible. And, of course, Voldemort himself. But she still couldn't help but feel incredibly guilty, whenever Harry was mentioned.

Now though.

Now she could make things right. Lily could raise her son, like she always wanted to. Sure, it won't be the same. It can never be the same, but at least she can have a second chance. Lily will do everything in her power to make things right, to make things how they were supposed to be.

Lily made her way to the kitchen. She did have three grown men in her house. They were obviously going to be very hungry when they woke up. Lily briefly remembered how skinny that Harry was. She was going to have to get him to eat more once he woke up.

Lily started on making the eggs. She waved her wand and all dozen of them cracked and dropped their contents into a bowl that hovered underneath them. She charmed a whisk to stir the eggs and then leaned back against the counter.

She hoped that Harry would wake up soon. As she was healing Harry, she had noticed some rather interesting scars that ran up and down his arms. Lily, being a Healer at St. Mungo's, had seen some pretty nasty scars. She wondered who, or what, did that to her son.

That was a question that had been on hers and James' minds lately.

 _What had happened to their son?_

 _How did he just show up, right next to their house?_

 _Did he even know who they were?_

These questions bounced back and forth in her brain for hours. Lily had tried to make sense of it.

They had known that Harry had to have been with Voldemort, or his followers. It was the only logical reason. He couldn't have been a Death Eater. He didn't have the mark. Maybe Harry had run away from his captors. That seemed like a reasonable option.

The more Lily thought about it, the more it made her head hurt. _How had Harry escaped?_ More importantly, _what did Harry's captors do to him?_

That was the question that Lily strived to learn the answer to, but she also dreaded it. She _needed_ to know what had happened to her son, but what if the answer was too horrifying to know. _Did she really want to know the terrors that her son had been through?_

Lily had questioned this hundreds of times over the past few days. However, she eventually realized that, she could only guess what had happened until Harry woke up.

Lily was pulled out of her thoughts by James, Sirius, and Remus coming into the dining room. She said 'good morning' to them as she set down their plates of food in front of them.

"I'm going to check on Harry."

James merely nodded at her as he began to scarf down his food like he had been starved.

Lily rolled her eyes and strayed from the room. She made her way to Harry's bedroom and briefly smiled.

They all hoped that Harry would like his new room. The walls were now painted red and were covered in quidditch posters. A golden snitch was charmed to fly around the ceiling courtesy of Sirius. " _He is obviously going to play seeker. Look how skinny he is!"_ The closet now held many clothes ranging from dress robes to muggle t-shirts and jeans, which was, of course, Lily's work. There also was a small wooden bookshelf in the corner that was filled with books. Remus insisted that it was for 14 years worth of birthday presents.

Lily crossed over to where her son was sleeping under the golden bedspread. She sat on the edge of the bed and brushed some of Harry's bangs out of his eyes. To Lily's delight, he leaned into the touch unconsciously.

Lily continued to stroke her son's hair when something glittered and caught her eye. She reached down, and realized that it was a necklace that Harry was wearing. She hadn't noticed it before. Lily unclasped the necklace and pulled it closer for inspection.

The necklace had a pendant that was held on by a golden chain. The pendant was almost octagon in shape. In the center it showed a serpentine S, inlaid with green stones. It looked to be a locket, from the hinges and clasp on the side. Lily tried to open it, but the locket didn't budge. The locket seemed to have a sinister feeling to it. Lily could almost swear that she could hear whispers coming from it.

Without realizing it, Lily had clasped the locket around her neck. Immediately, she could feel hopelessness so strong that she might have thought a dementor was near.

 _Her son could never wake up. Something could go wrong. He was going to be hurt, perhaps killed._

 _Harry would never love her. She did this to him. It was her fault that Harry was kidnapped. Who would ever love someone like her? Someone who got her son almost killed._

 _He will never love you… You did this to him…_ The words taunted her, over and over again.

Lily gasped. _No..! No! Harry would love her. She would make things right again. They would be a family again._

Lily's shaky hands found the clasp, and the locket dropped from around her neck.

She stared at it, feeling sick. _Was Harry feeling that way, before I took the locket off?_

Lily sighed and rubbed her forehead. She could sense the darkest of magic used in this necklace. Perhaps James would know what to think of it.

And with that, she tucked Harry in again, kissed him on the forehead, and set out to find her husband.

* * *

Lily watched as her husband paced back and forth, the locket clasped in his hand.

"So, do you have any ideas on what it could be?"

James stopped pacing and sighed. "It could be anything. I'm sure Albus has some ideas though." He rubbed his eyes tiredly. "I'm more worried about how Harry got to it." He suddenly turned to Lily. "Do you think that it could have been affecting his health?"

Lily wrung her hands. "Possibly. I felt sick after wearing it. Also, it seemed to project only negative emotions into your brain. It almost felt like there was a dementor in the room with me." Lily saw her husband's panicked look. "Don't worry. I'm sure Harry will be fine. He should be waking up tomorrow." She sighed at James' unconvinced look. "Why don't we floo Albus? I'm sure he will have some answers."

* * *

 **A/N: That's chapter two, done and dusted. I just want to give a big 'Thank You' to everyone that has supported this story. I really appreciate it. I wasn't expecting such a response on this story again. Once again, fill free to ask questions. Hopefully, most of them will be answered in the story, but I am willing to give clarification and possibly some special previews to people that ask.**

 **Thanks again,**

 **Aroissa**


	4. Ch 3--Reconciling Part I

_**Chapter 3: Reconciling Part I**_

 _ **James PoV**_

"So, do you know what it is?" James' anxious voice made Dumbledore look up from where he was studying the locket.

"I have a theory, my boy, though I would like to speak with young Harry when he is recovered."

Lily's worried voice crossed over. "What _is_ your theory?"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "This locket could possibly be one of the keys to defeating Voldemort."

* * *

 _ **Harry's PoV**_

"Do you think he will know who we are?" A quiet voice roused Harry from his slumber. It sounded like the owner was a woman. She held a worried tone.

"I don't know, Lily." This one was a man. He sounded exhausted.

Harry breathed in sharply, alerting the couple that he was awake. _His mother's name was Lily._

"Harry..? Are you awake." It was the woman, Lily. _She knew his name._

"We're not going to hurt you." The man's gentle voice told him.

Harry hesitantly opened his eyes.

He looked around and saw that he was in a warm bed. The man and woman sat on either sides of him, at the edge of the mattress. The room looked cheerful and friendly. Harry closed his eyes in relief.

 _This wasn't a prison._

 _I escaped._

 _I'm free._

Harry felt a soft hand brush his bangs out of his eyes. He unconsciously leaned into the touch as he reopened his eyes. Someone gently slid his glasses on his face.

The woman, Lily, smiled at him. Harry finally got a closer look at her. She had red hair. Her nose looked like his. She had bright green eyes and Harry got the impression that he was looking in the mirror.

Not being able to bear it, Harry looked to the man. He had the same messy black hair that Harry had. _He looks like me._

Harry was suddenly reminded of a large black book that he had stolen. He remembered reading the title in golden letters.

 _Harry Potter_

He remembered snippets of information that he had gathered.

 _Kidnapped…_

 _The Dark Lord...weakened by Harry Potter…_

 _Spell backfired…_

 _Trained to be a Death Eater…_

 _Killed when the time is right…_

More important than all of these, Harry remembered the picture that he had found near the back of the book. It showed a young couple. The woman with striking red hair and emerald eyes. The man with black messy hair and spectacles. The woman was holding a baby with only messy ebony hair visible. The picture was captioned:

 _ **James and Lily Potter, shortly after their son, Harry, was born.**_

Harry gasped, feeling incredibly overwhelmed. _These people had to be…_

"Who are you?" He suddenly asked. He could see their faces fall, as if they were disappointed by something.

The man swallowed. "I'm James Potter and this is Lily, my wife, we're…" He stopped short when Harry breathed in sharply.

Harry suddenly looked down, nervously grasping at the blanket that was laid over him. "Y-You're my parents…" He looked up at them. "...aren't you?"

Lily suddenly covered her mouth with her hands. There were tears in her eyes, but they were sparkling with happiness. James had the brightest smile on his face.

Lily wiped her eyes and put her arms around him. Harry hesitantly responded.

"We are Harry. We're your parents." She sobbed. Harry clung tighter to her. "You're my mum then?" She nodded, smiling widely. James sat next to them and wrapped them both in his arms. "And I'm your dad Harry." He said smiling.

They sat like that for a while, until Harry suddenly looked up. "I was kidnapped. Wasn't I?"

* * *

 _ **James' PoV**_

James gazed into his son's pleading eyes. They looked so much like Lily's that it nearly took his breath away.

He nodded shortly. "It was the day before your first birthday."

Harry bit his lip. (James noted that it was a habit that Lily had as well.) He looked up at them with his vibrant green eyes. "C-Can you tell me about it?" Harry said carefully, as if afraid of the response.

James blanched. He didn't want to experience that night ever again. He wanted to rid it from his mind, perhaps pretend that it never happened. But his son deserved to know.

He let go of Harry and sat across from him. Lily sat next to him. Her hand was on Harry's shoulder.

"It was the day before your first birthday." James hesitantly started. "We had been running from Voldemort for months. You know about Voldemort, right?"

Harry nodded. "Oh, I know all about him." He spoke so bitterly that James paused and looked at him. Harry flushed.

"Sorry." He said a bit sheepishly. James nodded and continued on, making a mental note to ask his son about that later.

"So, we had been running for Voldemort for months. Always moving. We must have stayed at, at least, seven places before we returned to Godric's Hollow." He smiled slightly. "The wards were nearly finished and we wanted to have a birthday party for you."

James looked up at his son and saw that he was completely tuned with everything that he was saying. This meant he must have been raised by a wizard or witch. James didn't know how he felt about that.

"We had put every protection charm we could think of on the house." He looked down again. "No one thought that anything could have happened to you. There were only a few people who knew where we were." James licked his lips. His mouth suddenly felt very dry. "They were Albus Dumbledore, and my best friends: Sirius, Remus and Peter."

Harry's eyes narrowed, seeing his father's discomfort. "One of them betrayed you, didn't they?"

James took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. He looked Harry in the eyes. "The night before your birthday, Sirius volunteered to watch you. We were caught up in your birthday party. We never thought that something would happen that night." James suddenly found it difficult to speak.

Harry apparently noticed because he laid his hand on James'. "It's ok. You don't have to tell me."

James took another deep breath. "No...no. You deserve to know...It's just…" Lily cut him off. "It's okay dear. I'll tell him." Lily took both of Harry's hands in hers and looked him directly in the eye. "We told Sirius that it would be fine. Th-that night Peter Pettigrew snuck into your nursery and took you."

Harry's head shot up. "Pettigrew?" He exclaimed.

James studied him. "You know who he is?" He sounded accusing.

Harry flushed. "Er...sort of. It's not important. I'll tell you later."

James studied him again. He was definitely going to ask about that.

Lily didn't look convinced either, but she continued anyway. "We searched for you for years. We couldn't find anything." Lily gasped, her eyes filling with tears. "We thought you were d-dead."

James rubbed her back comfortingly. "You don't know how happy it made us... to find you alive after all this time."

 _ **Harry's PoV**_

Harry looked down and swallowed. He'd never had anyone say anything like that to him. Suddenly wishing to change the conversation, Harry looked around at the room again. He could now see that there were quidditch posters on the walls.

"Where am I?" He asked, following the charmed snitch with his eyes.

His father smiled. "Our cottage in Godric's Hollow. To be precise, your new room."

Harry's eyes widened. "My room?" His voiced in disbelief. Lily nodded, a loving smile on her face. Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "You…" He swallowed nervously. "You want to keep me then?" He asked softly.

Harry's parents looked at him, disbelief evident in their features. Lily laid a hand on his arm. "Of course we want to. That is...if you will forgive us."

Harry looked at her, shocked. "Forgive you..? For what?"

James looked deep into his eyes. "It's our fault you got kidnapped. We…" Harry didn't want to hear anymore. "Your fault?" He exclaimed in disbelief. "Of course it's not your fault. It's Pettigrew's…" He spat out the name like it was poison. "and Voldemort's fault."

Lily tried to protest. "But we…" Harry cut her off. "No. It was their fault and only their fault. You couldn't have prevented it. Voldemort would have found another way." His mother nodded reluctantly then looked up. "So...you would let us be your parents again?" Her eyes looked so hopeful.

Harry felt elated. He could finally have a family, something he'd never had before. It was the one thing he had always wished for. "Of course...Mum." Harry hadn't realized how good it felt to say the word. _Mum._ Such a simple simple word had such a big impact on him.

Lily had wrapped him in her arms again as soon as he had said the last word. James, his father now, followed soon after. It was only the second time that this had happened, but Harry felt so safe and loved in his parents arms. Both feelings were foreign to him. He had never loved anyone that he could remember. Only a month ago, he was certain that no one loved him.

Harry realized that he had tears running down his cheeks and hastily wiped his eyes. Lily looked at him in concern. "Harry..?" He looked up at her with reddened eyes. "What's wrong sweetheart?" Harry took a deep breath and looked down. "It's just that...I've never had a family before." Unknownst to him, his parents shared a look over his head.

James wrapped his arms around his son. "We're your family now. Like we were always supposed to be."

Harry smiled up at him, more happy then he had ever been. James suddenly got a glint in his eye. "Harry..? What happened to you? We found you almost dead by a lake."

Harry paled and wouldn't meet his parents eyes. "You really don't want to know." Lily, her interest now caught, turned to her son. "Sweetheart, please tell us. We need to know." Harry bit his lip. "I...tripped."

James stared at him. "You tripped." He echoed in disbelief. "The only way you could have gotten those injuries is if you 'tripped' into a pile of knives." Harry winced and looked down. "I...uh...It happened where I used to live." He said carefully.

Harry could almost see James' brain working frantically. "Where you used to live…" He muttered. "The child's room I found with the quidditch posters." He looked up and saw the posters around the room. "The poster I found…Kadnars dead…" Realization dawned in his eyes and he looked at his son in horror. "You were at Kadnar Manor." Harry nodded. Lily looked shocked. "James, weren't they..?" He nodded angrily. "What did they do to you!" He shouted standing up. Harry flinched back, his eyes wide.

Lily put a hand on her husband's shoulder. It calmed him down, and also gave Harry a bit of relief. James knelt back down next to his son's bed. He clasped Harry's hands in his. "What did they do to you, son?" Harry couldn't meet his father's pleading gaze. How could he tell anyone about the horrors he faced in his childhood.

Lily saw her son's distress and turned to James. "Perhaps, we should talk another day, dear." Harry looked up, relieved. James nodded and reached for the comforter to tuck Harry in. He brushed his son's hair out of his eyes and kissed his forehead.

Lily took Harry's glasses off and set them on the night stand. "Try to get some sleep, sweetheart. You're still not recovered."

Harry nodded, only now realizing how exhausted he was. He let his eyes fall shut as his parents walked quietly out of the room.

* * *

Harry woke once again to soft voices. He opened his eyes to see two blurry figures in front of him. Someone handed him his glasses and he hastily put them on. Harry blinked, his vision clearing, until he realized that the two figures were his parents.

He returned their smiles and sat up, leaning against the headboard. _So it wasn't a dream._ Harry couldn't help but grin stupidly. _They're real! They're alive!_

Lily brushed the hair out of her son's eyes. "Harry, sweetheart, we'd like you to meet someone."

Harry nodded and stood up. "Who?" His parents smiled.

James took Harry's hand and pulled him along. "Your godfather."

Harry was bewildered. "I have a godfather..?" James grinned again.

Harry was led through the hallway and down the stairs. They finally arrived in the living room. James went through the door at the other end of the room, presumably to get someone.

Harry took the opportunity to look around. The sofas were a deep burgundy color and looked fairly expensive. Everything seemed to be decorated in a color scheme of red and gold.

Harry's eyes were caught to the mantle above the fireplace filled with pictures. He walked over their curiously. The pictures were all bordered by expensive looking gold frames. They all seemed to show his parents. Harry smiled at seeing his parents looking so loving and happy. He couldn't help but notice that they looked at him like that. He saw with a smile that he was in quite a few pictures as well.

Harry picked up a picture. It showed him as a baby with a man. The man had dark hair that went just past his ears. He was smiling broadly and his grey eyes were sparkling with mischief.

There was suddenly a noise behind him that made him jump. Harry hastily put down the picture and turned.

His father was back along with another man. The man looked like an older version of the man in the picture. His hair was slightly longer, now hanging just past his chin. In person, Harry could now see that his face held some aristocratic features, like some of the older pure-blood families. However, he still had a wide smile and his eyes still held mischief.

James grinned at his son. "Harry, I'd like you to meet Sirius Black, your godfather."

* * *

 **A/N: I know, cliffhanger. To be fair, I didn't want to end it there, but I had to or else this chapter wouldn't have gone up for another few days. I will admit, I had a lot of trouble with this chapter. So, tell me what you think.**

 **As always,**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Aroissa**


	5. Ch 4--Reconciling Part II

_**Last time: James grinned at his son. "Harry, I'd like you to meet Sirius Black, your godfather."**_

 _ **Chapter 4: Reconciling Part II**_

 _ **Harry's PoV**_

Harry's eyes widened. "You're my..?"

Sirius nodded, smiling at him. "Hey kiddo." Harry smiled back, feeling totally at ease.

They sat down next to each other on the couch. Neither of them noticed as James and Lily slowly walked out of the room.

Sirius put his hand on his godson's shoulder. His eyes held a wonder that Harry had never seen before. "You look so much like your father." Harry smiled widely.

His godfather suddenly started.

"Oh, I almost forgot." He pulled a shrunken package out of his pocket and enlarged it with a flick of his wand. He handed the package to Harry, who looked bewildered.

"What's this?" He asked.

Sirius smiled wider. "Consider it 14 years worth of birthday presents. Of course, I will be buying you other things as well."

Harry was shocked. "What..?"

Sirius laughed. "Well go on, then. Open it."

Harry reluctantly tore off the paper and caught his breath. Underneath the packaging was a wooden freshly polished broom handle. It had the word _Firebolt_ inscribed on it in gold lettering. Harry looked up, amazement and shock clouded his eyes. "A Firebolt?"

Sirius smirked. "You do like quidditch don't you?"

Harry stammered. "Of course, but…"

"What is it Harry?"

Harry met his godfather's joyful gaze. "This must have cost a fortune."

Sirius put an arm around his shoulders. "Anything for my godson."

Harry smiled. He couldn't believe that anyone would do this for him.

Overcome with gratefulness, Harry surged forward and wrapped his arms around his godfather.

Sirius, who was a little surprised but otherwise very pleased, returned the hug almost immediately.

Harry couldn't begin to express his gratitude. He just buried his head in his godfathers chest and whispered, "Thank you."

Sirius only held his godson tighter.

…

They eventually let each other go, when James and Lily came back in the room. They both had huge smiles on their faces, and Harry had a feeling that they were eavesdropping.

Sirius put an arm around his godson's shoulders and Harry smiled up at him. Sirius smiled back and turned to James. "Is Remus still on that Order mission?"

James nodded and was about to speak when the floo flared to life and a man stepped through.

The first thing Harry noticed was white. The man was tall and thin with a long silver beard. His eyes were a soul piercing blue that twinkled with happiness. They looked like they held unbelievable knowledge. He was also wearing colorful blue robes and half moon spectacles.

James turned to the floo. "Nice to see you, Albus." He glanced back at Harry. "Of course, Harry meet Albus Dumbledore, one of the most brilliant people I know."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled pleasantly. "You're too kind, my boy. Now, I assume you know why I am here." James nodded. He had an unreadable expression on his face, though he gestured for them to sit down.

Sirius' arm tightened around Harry's shoulders. "Do we have to do this today?"

Harry suddenly felt uneasy. He was sure that whatever Dumbledore was talking about had something to do with him.

Dumbledore looked grave. "I'm afraid so, my boy."

Harry looked to Sirius and his parents. "What do you mean? What has to happen today?"

Sirius sighed. "He wants you to tell us what happened to you."

Harry paled but took a deep breath. He knew that this would happen eventually. It did no good to keep delaying it. He nodded solemnly. "Do you have a pensive?"

"Harry you don't have to do this..." Harry cut Lily off. He turned to Dumbledore. "You're the leader of the light, aren't you?" Dumbledore nodded. "Good, that means that the information I have can, hopefully, help you defeat Voldemort."

"Harry!" He once again waved them off. Dumbledore placed James' pensive on the table and nodded to Harry. "On your call, my boy."

Harry reached for his wand, only to find it not in his robe pocket. He also only now realized that he wasn't wearing his old robes. He looked to his parents. "Where's my wand?"

James sighed. "Harry you don't have to do this." Harry narrowed his eyes. "I need to do this. I want to." James nodded slowly, finally relenting. He reached inside his robes and produced Harry's wand.

Harry took it and held it to his temple. He focused on his childhood. He gave only a few memories of it. Enough to give them a general idea of what happened. Most importantly, he focused on the information he gathered. Everything that could and would be useful. Every phrase or word that had the potential to defeat Voldemort. He placed all of this in the pensive and looked to Dumbledore. "Is there a way to split the pensive? So we can all watch at once?"

Dumbledore nodded gravely. "I believe so." With a wave of his wand the pensive split into cups that were passed around the room.

Harry glanced around at everyone once more and slipped into the memories.

…

They landed in the Kadnars' living room. Harry got a bad taste in his mouth when he saw it. It looked just how he remembered it. The carpet and walls were just as dreary as always. The furniture was laced with dark artifacts. The only thing missing was the dark mark carved into the coffee table and the Kadnars' dead bodies.

Suddenly a loud band issued that someone came from the door.

Harry recognized Dane Kadnar dragging his eight year old self through the door. He winced when Kadnar so much as threw him into the wall. His old self trembled in fear on the ground. Harry wished he hadn't had to of picked this particular memory. Kadnar creeped closer to shout at his past self.

"HOW DARE YOU FAIL IN YOUR STUDIES!" He bellowed to the cowering form on the floor. "YOU ARE PATHETIC, A WEAK, USELESS EXCUSE FOR A HUMAN BEING." The present time Harry winced with every word. He knew what would happen next.

"I SHOULD SHOW YOU WHAT A REAL CURSE IS, BOY!" Past Harry's eyes widened when Kadnar produced a wand. He muttered a spell that had Past Harry screaming in pain.

Harry heard the gasps of horror and was glad that he had cut that memory short. They didn't need to see the other horrors that Kadnar had inflicted on him.

The memory changed to the kitchen. This room was decorated just as the rest of the house was: dark and dreary. Harry turned to his past self. This time, he was around 10. Past Harry had his back to him. He was furiously working on preparing food while Mrs. Kadnar stood over him.

Harry could faintly see the bruises on the back of his neck and, judging from everyone else's expressions, they could too.

Harry turned back just to see himself drop a pan on the floor. The Kadnars had forced him to prepare them food the muggle way. They had said that he didn't deserve to use magic for this.

Harry saw Mrs. Kadnar's eyes narrow in anger and closed his eyes. He didn't want to hear this again.

"FOOLISH BOY!" She screeched. "YOU'RE JUST AS INCOMPETENT IN THIS AS ANY OTHER THING YOU DO!" Harry winced at the harsh words. He could imagine his past self backing away, fear present in his eyes. "YOU ARE A STUPID EXCUSE FOR A HUMAN BEING! NO WONDER YOUR PARENTS DIDN'T WANT YOU! LEFT YOU WITH US, THEY DID. WE TOOK YOU IN AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY US!"

Harry reopened his eyes as Mrs. Kadnar took his ten-year-old self's hand. She wrenched his arm over to the stove. As she held his hand on the burner, Harry couldn't suppress the shudder that went threw him. He held his breath until the memory changed again.

They appeared in the dueling room. Harry remembered the countless hours he spent in here. This room alone, was his personal Hell.

This time, past Harry was 12 years old. Old enough to begin realizing that what the Kadnars were doing was wrong.

Past Harry stood in the center of the room, wand aimed at a muggle man that the Kadnars had imprisoned. Dane Kadnar stood behind him.

"C'mon Harry." He said in a false calm voice that, even at 12 years old, Harry could see right through. "It's just a simple spell. _Crucio_. Just one word. You can do it."

Past Harry's arm shook, the muggle man's eyes held terror and he trembled against the chains that held him against the wall. He suddenly lowered his wand and turned around. "It's wrong."

Harry could see Kadnar's eyes narrow in anger, though he kept a pleasant expression on the rest of his face. "What do you mean, boy?" Past Harry took a deep breath. "He doesn't deserve it. He did nothing wrong."

Kadnar's left eye started started twitching, but he kept the false calm expression on. "Of course he deserves it. He's a muggle. He's lower than us." Past Harry glared at him. His mouth tightened. "He's not lower than us. No one deserves that! It's cruel!"

Kadnar snarled and dropped his facade. He turned to the muggle. "Avada Kedavra!" He shouted and spun back around. He grabbed Harry by his neck and shoved him away. Past Harry stumbled but regained his footing. He drew his wand and backed away.

"Maybe I should do it to you." Kadnar growled stalking closer. "Might teach you to obey your superiors." He raised his wand. "Crucio!" Past Harry saw it coming and quickly summoned a lamp. The spell hit the lamp and disappeared. Past Harry quickly cast an immobulus and ran out the door. He didn't once look behind him.

Harry's breath caught in his throat. He could feel the eyes of the others on him as he struggled to compose himself.

This was so much harder than he thought it would be. _This was a mistake._ He failed to take a deep breath. _They shouldn't have seen this._ _I never meant for them to see this._

Harry got some sort of control over his breathing as the memory changed.

Now they were in his bedroom. He recognized the time as a few weeks after he ran away. Harry winced at the thought of the punishment he got from the Kadnars after that 'stunt' he had pulled. In any sense, he was glad that he hadn't included that 'happy' childhood memory in this.

Harry turned to his past self, who was sitting at the desk. Past Harry was obsessively flicking through books, pausing every now and then to take notes. They were just close enough to see the title of the books:

 _Dark Artifacts and Where to Find Them._

 _The Uses of Dark Magic._

 _Purposes of Cursed Objects._

Harry could feel the accusing gazes on him as the memory changed. Now he was 14. This was only a few weeks ago. Past Harry held his wand in front of him-the tip of it illuminated with a lumos spell. He seemed to be in a dark room that was covered in old records.

Harry knew that this was the Kadnars' cellar. They had always kept it locked. Harry had never managed to find it open until now. The Kadnars had been locking something up in it when an emergency Death Eater meeting was called. In their haste, they had forgotten to lock it up, leaving the contents to Harry's prying eyes.

Past Harry came to the end of the room in front of a large book. The title was displayed in gold lettering: _Harry Potter._

Past Harry breathed in sharply and flipped the cover of the book. He opened in randomly and read a passage that caught his eye.

 _ **Harry James Potter**_ _kidnapped on the night of August 30th 1981... Pettegrew took him to the Dark Lord…_ Harry flipped the pages again. _The Dark Lord tried to take Harry Potter's magic. His spell somehow rebounded and hit him instead. The Dark Lord was weakened for reasons that no one understands…_ Harry flipped the page. _The Dark Lord requested that the boy be taken in by the Kadnars... They would try to train the boy to be a Death Eater... He said that he would kill him when the time was right…_

Harry took a quick look at the other members that were watching these memories. Lily had tears running down her cheeks and was clinging to James. James looked stony, though his eyes showed incredible sadness. Sirius had his arms crossed over his chest as he bit his lip. His eyes also were filled with grief. Dumbledore simply stood there with his hands clasped in front of him, though the familiar twinkle in his eye was gone.

Past Harry quickly shrunk the book and took it with him. He grabbed his bag that was outside of the cellar door and took off into the forest that sat next to Kadnar Manor.

The memory changed again and Harry noted that this was only a few weeks ago. Past Harry stood outside the door to the living room. His cloak was ripped and he looked exhausted. Harry had obviously been on the run. The sound in the memory was amplified so that everyone could hear what Past Harry was hearing.

"The Dark Lord requests this of you, Kadnar." Bellatrix Lestrange's voice drawled. Harry could see Sirius stiffen out of the corner of his eye.

"You wouldn't want to upset him, would you?" Harry could imagine Dane Kadnar frantically shaking his head on the other side of the door.

"No...no…of course not, but...if I may ask, what is so important about this locket." Kadnar's frightened voice floated out to them.

"That's none of your concern, Kadnar." Bellatrix said sharply. "Just be assured that it is something that he holds quite dear. Now! Make sure you get this to headquarters. You wouldn't like to experience the consequences if you failed."

"Now about the boy." Bellatrix's voice took on a strange tone. Past Harry carefully shifted closer to the door. "Your sure he hasn't come back yet,then?"

Kadnar scoffed. "He ran away weeks ago. There was no teaching him the dark arts anyway. He had too much of his parents in him." Bellatrix made a sound of disgust. "Filthy little Half-blood! The Dark Lord won't be pleased though…"

Past Harry quickly slipped out the door and ran back into the forest.

Now the memory jumped to about a week after the last one. Past Harry was back in the Kadnars' cellar after they had been called for another emergency meeting. The couldn't have kept the Dark Lord waiting, after all.

Past Harry quickly walked over to the pedestal at the back of the room. On it was the priceless object that Voldemort had entrusted the Kadnars to keep safe. As Harry got closer he saw that it was a locket. In the center it had a serpentine S inlaid with green stones. Past Harry could feel the dark magic that radiated off the necklace.

Glancing behind himself once, he quickly took the necklace and put it on. If this could help him get rid of Voldemort, he wanted to keep it safe.

Harry quickly slipped out of the cellar…

...to be greeted by Bellatrix Lestrange and Lucius Malfoy.

Harry heard his mom's gasp of horror. Sirius growled low in his throat. His dad softly whispered, "No…" A look of horror was on his face.

"Aww, does the little boy trying to defy the Dark Lord?" Bellatrix said in that awful baby voice of hers. Malfoy stepped closer brandishing his wand. "Give us the locket, boy."

Past Harry stepped back into the cellar, drawing his wand. "No." He spoke with no hesitation and no fear. (Unbeknownst to Harry, this made his parents swell with pride.)

Bellatrix cackled and stalked closer-there was a tinge of insanity to her voice. "Does the little boy think that his parents with love him if he defects to the blood traitors side?" She snarled at him when Past Harry pointed his wand at her.

"You filthy little half-blood! No one will ever love you!" She stroked her wand. "No one will ever know that you lived past that night. Avada Kadavra!"

Past Harry ducked behind a box full of scrolls. He quickly stood up and cast a Reducto at the ceiling. The falling stone caught the Death Eaters off guard. Past Harry dove out from behind the boxes and tore to the door. He wrenched it open and took off towards the forest. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the Death Eaters were scrambling out of the cellar. They raised their wands and Past Harry dove to the side as a green light shot over his shoulder. Unfortunately, he dove right into a cutting curse that slashed across his forehead. Past Harry cried out in pain as he ran into the forest.

The Death Eaters followed him for a while, occasionally hitting him with cutting curses. However, Past Harry didn't stop running, even when the Death Eaters gave up.

The memory cut to a while later when he stumbled across a lake. Too weak to continue on, he collapsed on the bank of the lake just as the last memory went dark.

…

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry for ending this chapter as sort of a cliff hanger. I really couldn't find a better place to cut it. Anyway, this chapter was mostly backstory. I hope that this answered some of your questions. Now that this is out of the way, we can start getting into the story some more.**

 **I also broke 3,000 words with this chapter. This is my longest chapter yet. :)**

 **Tell me what you thought about this chapter. I am open to suggestions, though I do appreciate them more when they are polite. :)**

 **Thanks for reading,**

 **Aroissa**


	6. Ch 5--Potestatem

_**Chapter 5: Potestatem**_

 _ **James' PoV**_

As the memory faded, everyone was launched out of the pensive and back into the Potters' living room.

James slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes. He felt an overload of emotions: Hate for the Kadnars. Anger at himself. But most importantly, he felt a deep sense of hopelessness and sorrow for what Harry had been through

How could he let that happen to his son? _How_ could he allow his child to face those horrors alone. It made him want to break down and weep. His son didn't deserve for that to happen to him. His sweet, innocent, beautiful little boy should have been safe. He was the last person that should have happened to.

James suddenly felt a surge of anger. If those bloody Kadnars weren't already dead, he didn't know what he would do to them.

James gazed at his son. His incredibly brave, amazing boy. He was extremely proud of him. Harry had the will to go to the light side, even when he was raised by some of the darkest. James couldn't begin to imagine what kind of strength it took for him to go against everything that he was ever taught. He couldn't believe that Harry still wanted them to be his parents, even when they were the ones that condemned him to that fate.

Wait.

Of course James could believe it.

He had seen through Harry's memories how the Kadnars treated him.

 _The poor kid probably never had someone to read him bedtime stories or buy him his first broom. He had no mother who would sing to him. He had no father who would tease him about girls. There was no one to comfort him. There was_ _ **nobody**_ _to love him._

James felt stricken with grief. This happened because of him. Harry grew up with nobody to love him because of _him_.

 _No!_ James told himself. _Remember what Harry said: It was Voldemort's and Wormtail's fault, not his._ Still though, it was hard to not take responsibility for what happened. Harry deserved better. James could see beyond those heavily guarded emerald eyes. Beyond that, there was just a little boy who wanted to be loved. And, no matter what James thought, as long as Harry wanted it, he would give his son the love he deserved.

* * *

 **Lily's PoV**

As Lily was shot out of the memory, her emotions caught up with her. She was aware that she had tears streaming down her face as she sat up.

Lily felt unbelievable sadness within her. Her son had to go through so much without her. She swallowed down another sob. Her poor little boy had to grow up in an abusive household with Death Eaters. He had been tortured and unloved. Harry grew up with no one. Lily couldn't begin to imagine the hardships that Harry went through.

Lily felt a terrible hollow sinking feeling in her stomach.

She had failed her son.

Harry, who was still just a boy, had the look of an adult who had seen years of horrors in his eyes. Lily felt more tears on her cheeks at the thought. She had seen how Harry acted. He had tried to guard his beautiful green eyes. But, as Lily knew so well, with as bright of eyes as he had, it would be almost impossible. It broke her heart that her son seemed to think that he had to hide his emotions.

She would be sure to change that habit.

Lily knew that Harry didn't know what it was like to have a real family with people who loved you.

Above all else, she was determined to show him what that was.

* * *

 _ **James' PoV**_

James glanced around as everyone was getting over their shock of the memories.

Lily had tears in her eyes, though she had a determined glint in her sad eyes. James grabbed her hand to reassure her. He glanced at Sirius and saw that his best friend looked incredibly sad. James realized that his friend's childhood was very similar to Harry's. They both grew up in terrible homes. _Maybe Padfoot could help Harry…_ As he glanced at his best friend, James knew that he would do everything in his power to help his godson. He had never been more grateful that he chose Sirius as his son's godfather.

¶ James looked at his son. He was standing at the edge of the room near the door. He looked like he couldn't decide if he wanted to run or stand there indifferently and act like nothing had happened.

A cough brought everyone's attention to Dumbledore. He gestured for everyone to sit down and they all complied.

"Now then, Harry, could you, perhaps, clear some things up for us?"

James turned to his son and studied him. Harry had sat at the edge of a sofa, seemingly deciding not to flee. He was staring fixedly at the floor. His eyes were bloodshot and he looked pale, but he didn't show any emotion, past that. All James wanted to do was take him in his arms, but he didn't think Harry would appreciate that right now.

Harry didn't look up when Dumbledore addressed him. "Ask away." His voice was flat and emotionless.

Dumbledore smiled, but it looked unusually grim. "Very well, now, about the locket…" Harry reached up to his neck, no doubt for the necklace that wasn't there. He started and turned to them, panic clouding his eyes. "The locket!" He exclaimed. "Where is it, I had it when I passed out, I'm sure of it."

James looked to Dumbledore. Dumbledore had taken the locket after they had asked him about it.

"No need to fret, my boy. I have it right here." Dumbledore reached into his bright robes and held out the locket.

Harry visibly relaxed. "Oh, good. Right…" He glanced around nervously. "As I'm sure you saw in the memory, this locket is apparently really important to Voldemort." They all nodded. Harry took a deep breath, his eyes hardened and he said. "I think that this locket gives him power."

Dumbledore peered at him over his half-moon spectacles. His expression was thoughtful. "What makes you think that?"

James watched as Harry reach into his cloak and took out the shrunken book. He tapped it with his wand and said the enlargement charm.

James saw that his son was still wearing the same cloak that they had found him in. "I don't remember seeing that in your pockets." He remarked curiously.

Harry glanced at him. "Concealment charm." James saw Lily gaze at their son with pride out of the corner of his eye.

Harry flipped to a page in the book and handed it to Dumbledore. He then sat down again and stared at a spot on the floor.

James watched Dumbledore with anticipation as he read the passage. It felt like it took him hours. The old wizard finally looked up and gazed at Harry with wonder. "Sweet Merlin."

"What is it Albus?" Lily said, her voice sharp.

Dumbledore turned to Lily, a thoughtful look on his face. "Lily, my dear, do you remember the protection spell that you placed on young Harry all those years ago?"

James had never heard of such a spell. In the corner of his eye he saw Sirius lean forward curiously. Harry quickly lifted his head before gazing at the floor again.

Realization dawned in Lily's bright eyes. "Of...of course, but, what does that have to do with the locket?"

James was quick to interrupt. "Hang on, what spell are we talking about?"

Lily glanced at him and bit her lip. "It was an old protection spell I found. It was very complex, I don't think I could fully explain it." She sighed. "I cast it on Harry when we first went into hiding. I didn't think it would worked." She then looked to Dumbledore again.

He took the hint and began to explain. "It seems as though Voldemort attempted to use the _Antipotestatem_ curse. I don't suppose you know what that is?" He paused when they shook their heads. "It is one of the darkest spells out there. It allows the caster to take away a wizard's magic. The victim is left similar to a squib." He then turned to look at Harry, who was stubbornly staring at the ground. "When Voldemort cast the curse, the protection spell that Lily placed on Harry was activated. The spell rebounded at hit Voldemort." Lily's eyes widened. Sirius looked up hopefully and asked. "So, Voldemort was left as a squib?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "I'm afraid not. As the spell rebounded, it wasn't as powerful as when it was originally cast. Voldemort was greatly weakened, but his magical core was still intact."

He then held up the locket again. "I believe Voldemort used this locket to regain some of his magic."

Lily shot up. "But, how would he do that? I've never heard of such a spell."

Dumbledore gazed at the locket again. "I believe he created the spell, by modifying another." He looked around the room at the pale faces. "Have any of you ever heard of a Horcrux?" All of them, even Harry, shook their heads.

James studied his son. "You don't know?" He asked, surprised. Harry shook his head. "I know what the locket does, but not entirely how it came to be." James nodded and turned back to Dumbledore as he continued.

"A Horcrux is an object in which someone can store a piece of their soul." He said to the horrified looks thrown his way. "As long as the piece of the soul lives in that object, the user is essentially immortal. To create a Horcrux, the user needs to take another's life in order to split their soul. The split portion would then be encased in an object with a spell." He then turned to look at Harry.

"I believe that Voldemort modified this. Instead of killing, he used the _Antipotestatem_ curse on the victim. He would then store their magical power in an object to use for himself."

James gazed at the locket. "So, that is part of his power?" Harry nodded and bit his lip. He looked up and met everyone's gaze. His eyes were a dangerous dark green. "I think he created more that one."

Dumbledore gazed at him, urging him to continue and he did. "A few years ago, I overheard a Death Eater meeting. It was before they realized that I was working against them. They said that Voldemort gave one of them to the Malfoys. They also mentioned that the Lestranges had one."

Sirius turned to him sharply. "They didn't put up silencing charms?" He said in disbelief.

Harry shook his head. "Voldemort forbade it. There were rumors of a spy and a traitor in the inner circle. Voldemort was paranoid that they were plotting against him."

James saw Dumbledore and Lily glance at each other at the mention of a spy. He noted that his son seemed to have seen this interaction.

Dumbledore gazed at Harry, a thoughtful look in his eye. "Did they say what the object was that the Malfoys had?"

Harry furrowed his brows and James smiled. It was something Lily did when she was deep in thought. "A diary. They said it was a diary."

Dumbledore smiled. "Precisely. I believe that we have one of our objects down."

* * *

 _ **A/N: Sorry for the shorter chapter. I had some trouble with this one as it is a backstory/reactions chapter. I'm not entirely happy with it but it will have to do for now. School has started this week so that has taken a lot of my time. I hope to update again soon. Next chapter is most likely a Potter family scene so stay tuned for that.**_

 _ **I appreciate your reviews.**_

 _ **Aroissa**_


	7. Ch 6--Family

_**Chapter 6: Family**_

 _ **Harry's Pov**_

Harry felt a strange mix of relief and dread as Dumbledore finally left through the floo.

He had achieved his goal. He got the information that the light side needed, no matter what the cost. Now they had a real chance of defeating Voldemort. If they could locate those objects…

"Harry…" His mother's voice called gently. Too gently. Harry looked up and winced. His parents were in front of him. There were looks of complete sadness and pity in their gazes.

Harry cringed and turned away from them. He didn't want their pity. He had dealt with his childhood. He was alive and fine. That was all what mattered.

Harry had turned to see that Sirius was stood beside him. He didn't hold the same pity in his gaze. His eyes only held sadness and deep understanding, which Harry was extremely grateful for.

Harry saw his father share a look with Sirius. James nodded once and turned to his wife. He whispered something in her ear and she nodded, wiping tears from her eyes.

Sirius turned back to Harry again. He squeezed his shoulder in reassurance and and walked through the floo.

Seeing no other option, Harry turned back to his parents.

He swallowed nervously.

Here comes the dread.

Harry forced himself to meet his parents' eyes, ignoring the fact that his whole being was screaming at him to run.

As he looked at his parents' sad and regretful faces, Harry couldn't take it anymore.

He turned away as the tears began to fall from his eyes.

He _never_ wanted this to happen. He didn't want pity. Harry completely regretted putting those memories in the pensive. They didn't _need_ to see his childhood. He only needed to put in the necessary memories. More than that, he could see the self-loathing that was in his parents' eyes. He never meant to cause anyone else pain.

Harry was vaguely aware that he was sobbing into the arm of the couch, probably quite loudly. He knew that the Kadnars would curse him for breaking down like this. He attempted to stifle a sniffle but failed.

Harry tried to sit up in order to wipe his eyes when he was suddenly taken into strong arms. Finally relenting, Harry buried his head in his father's shoulder and wrapped his arms around his waist. He felt his mother's soft hands threading through his hair.

Harry broke down at the feeling of being with his parents. He had never felt more safe and secure before now. The Kadnars had never offered him comfort or affection. He had to rely on his own. He had never had any friends or family.

 _Family_.

He had a family now. The thought made him want to smile with glee. He had a father who could play quidditch with him. He had a mother that would nag him about his grades and embarrass him.

He had someone to love.

 _Love._

Harry had never thought that someone had loved him. He thought that his parents had abandoned him because he was a freak. That was what the Kadnars had told him.

But to find out that his parents wanted him…

It was a greater gift than anyone had ever given him. His parents loved him. They must have loved him...right?

Harry snapped out of his thoughts and realized that his mother was whispering soothing words to him. He clung to his father tighter, pressing his face into James' robes.

"I'm sorry." He sobbed. "I should have never told you…" Lily rubbed his back gently. "It wasn't your fault sweetheart." She said soothingly. "We needed to know. It's the only way that we can help you."

Harry stiffened in his parents' embrace. He didn't want pity. There was _nothing_ wrong with him. "I don't need help!" He tried to say it harshly, but his voice broke. "There is nothing wrong with me." He saw his parents glance at each other over him. "We didn't mean it like that, Harry." James said, clinging to him tighter. "We want to be your family, if you will let us."

Harry almost sighed in frustration. "Of course I want you too." He said firmly. "None of that was your fault. I don't blame you. You shouldn't blame yourselves." Lily smiled at him and tucked a stray bit of hair behind his ear. "We love you, with all of our hearts."

Harry leaned back into his parents embrace. Those words had filled him with more happiness than he knew was possible to feel. Exhausted from his emotional rollercoaster, Harry slowly let his eyes fall shut.

* * *

 _ **James' PoV**_

To James, having his son in his arms was the best feeling in the world. (The day Lily Evans said yes was the only thing that could top it.) As he gazed down at Harry, he couldn't prevent the smile that slowly grew on his face.

Harry looked so peaceful when he was asleep.

James could no longer see the darkness that seemed to cloud his face. His eyes that held experience of so many more years than he has lived, were closed gently. He looked so relaxed when he was asleep. He looked like he didn't have a care in the world.

He looked like the young boy he was supposed to be.

James looked to his wife. She was stroking Harry's hair softly, a small smile graced her face. James hadn't seen her look so happy in a long time. _15 years to be exact._ He thought somberly.

"We're going to be a real family." He said, breaking the silence. Lily looked to him. There was a certain fire in her eyes."Of course we are." She said determinedly.

* * *

 _ **Harry's PoV**_

Harry awoke in the same warm bed that he had been sleeping in. He smiled as he remembered the words his parents had spoken to him.

 _We love you._ They had said. It had been the first time anyone had said that to him.

Harry put on his glasses and sat up. Streams of sunlight from the window had illuminated the room. Harry glanced out of the window. He guessed that it was late morning. He must have slept through the night.

The forest sat on what Harry assumed was the edge of the property. He could see a dirt path that led to the edge of a hill. He realized that it probably led to the lake that he had collapsed by.

Harry turned away from the window and studied the room. _His room._ He remembered his father telling him. This was the first time he had gotten a good look at it.

The walls were painted red. _Gryffindor red._ He remembered from the books he had read. Harry had managed to find a book about Hogwarts in the Kadnars' library. He had always wanted to visit there. It sounded like an amazing place. Harry sighed as he remembered the facts. The Kadnars had tutored him themselves with other death eaters. He had never received his Hogwarts letter, and he never would.

Harry broke away from the morbid thoughts to look at the rest of the room. In addition to the red paint, there were quidditch posters covering the walls. Harry smiled as he watched the players race around on their brooms. There was a wooden desk in the corner next to a small bookshelf.

Harry walked over to it and saw that it was fully stocked. He smiled as he gazed upon all of the books. He glanced up and saw that there were a few picture frames that rested on top of the shelf. Harry smiled again as he saw that the pictures were of him. He carefully picked up a gold frame that showed what must have been him as a child. He was zooming around happily on a toy broom. His smile slowly turned to a frown as he realized what could have been.

"I hope you like it." A voice called from behind him. Harry started and turned around. His father was standing in the doorway. He immediately relaxed and returned the photograph to the top of the shelf. "Sorry?"

James walked further into the room. "Your room." He explained. "Do you like it?"

Harry glanced back at him. "Of course. It's amazing. Thank you." He was turning away from the bookcase when something caught his eye. On the wall there was a familiar looking poster. He crossed over to it and realized that it was the quidditch poster he had taken with him when he escaped.

Harry looked back to see his father watching him from his bed. He smiled a little at the uncertain look that his face held. "Now I know how you knew I liked quidditch."

James grinned and pulled his son to sit beside him. "Of course you would like quidditch. You _are_ my son." A thoughtful look crossed his face. "How _did_ you learn about quidditch? I assume that the Kadnars didn't teach you."

Harry bit his lip and looked toward the window. It was mildly embarrassing how he learned quidditch. He hadn't had his father to teach him. "I...taught myself." He said evasively.

James furrowed his brows. "Taught yourself? How did you manage that?" Harry shrugged casually even though his felt rigid. "I...err…I read books." He rushed out.

James' eyes lit with amusement. "You read books about quidditch?" He asked incredulously.

Harry flushed and glared playfully at James. "It's not like I had any other option. There was no one there to teach me!" He regretted his words as soon as he saw his father's face fall. He was about to take it back when James smiled sadly.

"Well then." He said. "I may not have taught you how to fly, but that doesn't mean I can't fly with you."

Harry's face lit up making James grin. "Really?" He asked eagerly.

"Of course Kiddo," James said, ruffling his son's hair. "Padfoot did give you that Firebolt, didn't he?"

A confused look crossed Harry's face. "Padfoot?" He asked curiously.

James smiled again. "Sirius." He said in answer. "Me and my friends in school made up nicknames for each other. They just kind of stuck." He held up his fingers. "Sirius is Padfoot, I'm Prongs, Remus is Moony, you'll be meeting him soon, and…" A dark look crossed his face. "Peter _was_ Wormtail."

Harry ignored his father's discomfort and instead asked, "Why did you call each other that?"

A gleeful look set on James' face. "I'll show you."

"What..?"

James stood up from the bed and stood in the middle of the floor. A second later, James Potter was replaced with a beautiful stag with elegant antlers.

Harry's jaw dropped. He stood up and crossed over to Prongs.

"You're an animagus?" He asked in wonder.

James transformed back and nodded. "A stag. That's why they call me Prongs."

Harry nodded. "So, what are…"

"Sirius is a big black dog." They both smiled. "Peter's a rat." Harry snorted. "Figures." He muttered. "And Remus, well he is… a werewolf."

Harry's eyes widened. "A werewolf?" He exclaimed.

James mistook his tone as fear and was quick to explain. "They are not all bad, you see. They are perfectly harmless for most of the month…"

Harry cut him off. "I don't care."

James blinked.

"It's not his fault, I don't judge people for what they have been forced to become. And like you said, he is perfectly harmless most of the month."

James felt an incredibly heart whelming feeling. "Well." He said, feeling choked up. "Lets go get to flying.

* * *

 _ **A/N: Hope you've enjoyed. Stay tuned for the next chapter. I love hearing from you!**_

 _ **-Aroissa**_


	8. Ch 7--Nightly Strolls

_**Chapter 7: Nightly Strolls**_

 _ **Harry's PoV**_

It had only been a month and Harry had, surprisingly, adjusted well to his new life. Everyday, they ate breakfast together. (Something the Kadnars had never done.) Sirius would sometimes join them. Harry grew to appreciate his Godfather more than he thought. Sirius didn't treat him like he was glass. He joked around and played exploding snap with him. Sometimes in the afternoons, Harry, James and Sirius would sometimes go flying. They couldn't play quidditch since the Potter cottage didn't have a pitch, but Harry didn't mind. He loved the feeling of wind in his hair. When he was younger, it was the only thing that truly made him feel free.

Harry's life had taken a different turn. He surprisingly felt at peace, which only made him uneasy. His life had always been full of spontaneity. There was nothing that he could count on, and no one that he could depend on. Life with the Potters was frustratingly uneventful.

Harry should have felt happy about this, but he couldn't relax. He knew that something was bound to happen. To him, peace was foreign.

Which, was exactly why he had to do something besides sitting around, enjoying life.

When Harry lived with the Kadnars he would hear a lot of compromised information about the dark side. The Death Eaters never seemed to notice that he was there. They would, however, not always have meetings at Kadnar Manor. This led Harry to sneak out in order to eavesdrop. He had never told anyone about this and never saw anything wrong with it. As long as he stayed hidden, nothing bad would happen to him, _right?_

So, Harry continued this habit. It gave him something to work on. Actively working against the dark side was the only thing that kept him sane at the Kadnars'. Still, Harry only left at night. He knew that his parents were a little paranoid. They didn't even let him outside without someone there with him. They did have a good reason for this, but it still frustrated Harry to no end. When he snuck out, he left a note on his pillow. It simply read:

 _ **If you find this and I am gone, I'm fine. I am not in any danger. I will be home soon.**_

 _ **Harry**_

His parents had never found the note. Or at least never had said anything to him. Harry knew that his parents had very strong wards on the cottage. Through some discrete questions, Harry had found out that the wards only warned if someone that wasn't of Potter blood (Or if they hadn't been keyed in.) was approaching. This made Harry's life extremely simpler.

Or so Harry thought as he traveled through the woods by Potter Manor. He made his way passed the wards and stepped into the night, tugging his jacket around him.

Another thing that made Harry's life similar; his animagus ability. Harry had studied the art of becoming an animagus for years at Kadnar Manor. He thought that it would have been a very useful ability. Unfortunately, this was before Harry had found out about wards.

As it turns out, there was anti-animagus wards around Kadnar Manor. Harry thought that it must have been another paranoia of Voldemort. Either way, this made it impossible for Harry to actually attempt to turn into his animagus form.

At Potter manor, he had been able to pick up his animagus form relatively quickly. Harry guessed that it was because of how long he had studied the theory.

Harry finally reached the clearing where he had always departed. He quickly glanced around and closed his eyes. He concentrated on willing his body into his animal form. Harry knew that one wrong move and he could be stuck as half an animal

He felt his body shifting and shrinking. He felt his hair turn into feathers and his feet turn into talons.

Harry's eyes snapped open and he felt his senses sharpen. His eyesight sharpened and his hearing became clearer.

Harry flapped his wings and unsteadily took off into the night. He still had to work on that.

If anyone had looked up, they would have seen a peregrine falcon swooping gracefully over the trees.

* * *

 _ **Lily's PoV**_

Lily Potter couldn't sleep. It was three in the morning and she hadn't even managed a wink of it.

She should be happy. She should be more relaxed than she ever was. After all, her son had come home. They were a real family now.

However, Lily couldn't help but feel that something would go wrong. Lily had seen through her son's memories. Over the overwhelming guilt, terror, and heartbreak, she had seen that he had practically obsessed over finding out how to defeat Voldemort.

Now, all Harry did was study. Every time she saw him, he had a book or parchment and a quill. She had asked him what he had been studying. He had only replied that he wanted to know all that he could. "There's a war going on." He had said.

It didn't sit right with her.

She didn't like to think that her son was preparing for war. He had been a part of it already. He should be able to enjoy life, not worry about which spell he would need to survive a battle.

He was too young. Far too young. Lily had never wanted this for Harry. Her and James had so many dreams for him, for what he had become.

The look in Harry's eyes worried her. Lily had always been perceptive. (She had noticed, feeling half joy and half dread that Harry had inherited this trait.) She could see the clouded doubt in Harry's eyes. See him struggling to believe that they were really there, that he could talk to them.

Beyond that is what worried Lily the most. Clouded in Harry's green eyes was a flame of determination, a willingness to do what was right. It was the look of a soldier ready to go into battle.

She wanted to talk to Harry, she just didn't know how. Mother's instincts only went so far.

Lily sighed as she finally decided that she would get out of bed. There was _no way_ that she would sleep like this.

Lily clambered to the door. She just needed to check if Harry was alright. Stumbling sleepily, she made her way to Harry's room. It was right across from hers. They had made sure that he had that room. You could never be too careful. (She had learned this the hard way.)

Lily gently pushed open the door and peered inside. The first thing she noticed was that Harry was not in his bed. The second, the window was open.

Lily felt the blood drain from her face. No longer half sleep, she barged into the room.

Desperately spinning around, searching for her son, she felt on the verge of a panic attack.

She was about to break down in tears when she saw the note sitting innocently on the bedside table.

She felt little relief as she read the note.

 _The wards._ She remembered. _The wards surely would have gone off._ _No one could get in here...but Harry could get out._

Lily snatched the note and called out the door-desperation in her voice. "James! James come here! Harry's gone!" Not the best choice of words, she realized as she heard her husband crash out of bed and come running into the room, a wild gleam in his eyes.

Wordlessly she handed him the note. James' eyes had widened and he stared at her, asking a question with his eyes.

She nodded, the first tears slipping from her eyes. "He's gone."

The note fluttered to the ground, slipping out of James' grasp. The words were clearly visible:

 _ **If you find this and I am gone, I'm fine. I am not in any danger. I will be home soon.**_

 _ **Harry**_

* * *

 _ **Harry's PoV**_

Harry gasped with pain as he landed and transformed back into his human form. He leaned wearily on a tree and held a hand to his chest. His hand came away sticky with blood and Harry's eyes widened with panic.

Perfectly safe indeed. He scolded himself. How could he have been so stupid. Saving his internal self hatred for later, Harry pulled himself upright.

He just had to make it to the wards. Stumbling blindly, he pulled himself in the direction of the house. Or...where he thought the house was.

He closed his eyes as his vision began to swim, black spots dancing in front of him.

 _Focus on something._ He told himself.

Harry took a deep breath. He remembered how everything went wrong. He could see Bellatrix snarling in front of him, wand raised as he struggled to take off. The Death Eater's had chased him for a while until he was lost in the sky.

He had gotten away relatively unscathed. Only a single cutting curse had hit him. And a stray rock had collided with his head. It wasn't big enough to knock him out. It did give him a nasty headache though.

Harry didn't know how they knew his animagus form, and he wasn't in a state to think it through.

The only thing he could do is stumble blindly through the forest and hope that his family would find him.

* * *

 _ **Sirius' PoV**_

Sirius paced back and forth frantically in his best friend's living room. James was staring out the window, towards the woods. Lily sat on the sofa, an untouched cup of tea in her hands.

He glanced at the clock and felt sick. It had been two hours since James had called him...since Lily had found Harry gone.

He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Why can't we go look for him?" He asked to no one in particular.

It was Albus Dumbledore who answered. "I believe that now is the time to do just that. We've waited for far too long."

Sirius jumped. He had forgotten that the old man was here. "Well then let's go!" He said exasperated. "Cast a tracking charm or something."

Dumbledore turned to Lily and James.

"I'll need something of his. Something that he values very much."

James ran into Harry's room and brought out the Firebolt. "Lets hope this works." He said with a grim smile.

And so, they began to trek through the woods. The broom hovering in front of them, supposedly leading them to Harry.

Eventually they came upon a clearing in the trees. Sirius looked around and sniffed the air. He had shifted into Padfoot in order to have better senses.

He sniffed once more and recoiled as if something had hit him. James noticed and turned to him. "What is it Padfoot?"

Sirius didn't waste time trying to answer, he just took off through the trees.

…

Blood.

Padfoot smelled blood. It was mixed with Harry's scent. The scent seemed to be fresh, which immensely worried (but also relieved) Sirius.

He could faintly hear James calling to him. For a second, Sirius wanted to turn back and look at the sight of Albus Dumbledore and James Potter tripping through the woods. But, he continued onward. Lily had stayed home, in case Harry would come back.

Harry.

Sirius could still feel the raw terror when James had told him that he was missing.

Harry was the only thing that mattered.

He wouldn't lose his godson a second time.

…

Sirius burst into another clearing, James and Dumbledore right behind him. He knew that Harry was close. He just had to…

There he was.

Sirius stopped short, causing his companions to almost crash into him.

Harry was slumped against a tree. One hand rested against his chest. (Which was covered in blood.) The other held his wand.

Sirius transformed back into his human form and sprinted toward his godson.

He collapsed to his knees next to Harry. He was vaguely aware that James had crumpled next to him.

Sirius gently lifted his godson's hand off of his chest to inspect the wound. He cringed when he saw it. "Cutting curse." He muttered. A nasty one at that.

Dumbledore knelt next to Harry and waved his wand a few times. "He needs medical attention." He said gravely. Blue eyes met James'. "Lily is better at healing than I am."

James swallowed as Sirius put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "He'll be okay." Sirius half whispered.

James nodded shakily and took Harry into his arms.

Together, they set out through the woods once more.

* * *

 _ **A/N: I hope you guys are still enjoying this story. The plot is really starting to kick off. I love to hear from you guys.**_

 _ **-Aroissa**_


	9. Ch 8--Compromise

_**Chapter 8: Compromise**_

 _ **Harry's PoV**_

Harry winced as his mother put a wet cloth to his chest. Lily looked up and tried to sternly glare at him but failed when she noticed the pain etched in his face.

His father was pacing by the fireplace. Every once in awhile, he would glance over. Not with anger or sadness. Only disappointment.

That was what killed Harry the most. He had never cared about disappointment before. After all, there was no one who cared enough to be disappointed in him. Harry had done whatever he pleased at the Kadnars'. He knew the risks. If he was caught they'd hit him with a stinging or cutting curse. If they were feeling really resentful, they would use the cruciatus curse on him. Harry had dealt with the pain then, but this was an entirely different kind of pain.

He could see it in his eyes. This pain killed him more than any curse ever had. He didn't deserve these parents. Not from day one. He'd gotten another chance with them and he had blew it. Threw it away like trash because he couldn't help but need to be in the loop.

Harry would take it all back in a heartbeat. But he knew better. There are no take backs. What is in the past is in the past.

Where would they send him? He hoped not back to the death eaters. No. They weren't that cruel. Perhaps an orphanage. If so, he deserved worse.

Who wanted a son that screwed everything up?

Harry cringed. No, he wouldn't go into an orphanage. He would live on the streets if he had to.

Harry suddenly felt a reassuring hand on his shoulder and looked up to meet concerned grey eyes.

Sirius must have thought that the cringe was from pain because he held out a pain relieving potion. Harry shook his head. "I deserve the pain."

James suddenly turned from the fireplace. "Yes you do."

Harry flinched violently and didn't look up. If he did, he would have saw an immediately regretful look on his father's face.

No. He most definitely deserved this pain. He knew that. He just didn't know that it would hurt so much to have someone tell him that.

Swallowing some of his heartache he stared at the door. "So...where are you going to send me? I assume an orphanage."

Lily's head shot up. "Wh...what?" She said. Harry glanced back then flicked his eyes away. So, not an orphanage then. Maybe they thought that he deserved worse. Harry was genuinely hurt. "I...uhh...I guess the streets then? I won't go back to the Death Eaters."

The hand returned to his shoulder but Harry shrugged it off. He didn't want to see their thoughts in their faces. It was better if they just told him flat out. "Where then?" He must have said this a little too forcefully because a hand cupped his chin and raised it. Harry flinched and closed his eyes, bracing himself for the hit. It never came.

He hesitantly opened his eyes to see his godfather gazing at him with utter remorse. Harry was glad that it wasn't the usual teary eyed sorrowful expression, but this one almost made him feel worse.

Harry turned away to hide his tears. He didn't deserve to be sad. Not all of this was his fault.

He felt his mother's arms around him and realized that she somehow understood him.

Harry rested his head on her shoulder. He would allow himself this one last piece of comfort.

He felt soft hands stroking his hair and glanced up to see his father looking incredibly remorseful.

Harry closed his eyes and enjoyed this feeling. He felt safe in his parent's arms. Like he wasn't entirely alone in this terrible world. He faintly heard a voice in his head that told him he didn't deserve this.

A soft voice somehow reached his conflicted mind. "Harry, we would never abandon you. Everyone does something that they probably shouldn't have once in awhile. It doesn't make us live you any less."

Harry swallowed roughly. His throat was clogged from tears do he nodded shakily.

Soft fur made it's way under his hand and Harry clutched onto it. He was immensely grateful for the family that he had obtained.

...

After Harry had explained and confessed about everything, and frankly poured out his heart and soul, he felt so much better. All of the guilt and grief had left him. It made him feel...lighter.

Dumbledore had come back at some point and had talked to Harry's parents quietly in a corner about something.

They had all decided to go to on a vacation of sorts to Hogwarts. After all, Harry probably had the most information on Voldemort that the light side had access to.

Harry's father and godfather would work with the aurors to set up more protections around Hogwarts. His mother would help in the hospital wing. Harry would not be a student. (As they had figured out that he had studied way past the 5th year material.) Instead, he would be a sort of guest. He wouldn't be in a house either. (Which relieved Harry to no end. He didn't want to take the risk of not being in Gryffindor and upsetting his family.) He would be allowed and even encouraged to talk to the students. (Harry almost snorted at that one.) As if anyone would want to be friends with the freak. Harry has never had friends. As far as he was concerned, he didn't need them. He was perfectly content spending his days studying, researching, and possibly finding out Voldemort's weakness.

Hours later they were fully packed. Sirius and James suggested just fluing there, but Lily wouldn't hear it.

"One of my favorite Hogwarts memories was the boat ride. We _are_ at least taking him on that."

Harry didn't have a clue what they were talking about, but a little while later he was seated in a small wooden boat with his family. Along with them there was a giant of a man. (Who introduced himself as Hagrid, keeper of the keys at Hogwarts.) Harry rather liked Hagrid. He was friendly and had a fascination with large hairy creatures. He also kept dabbing at his eyes with a handkerchief. (Lily an' James' son back?)

Harry thought that it had been a little strange that a man he hadn't ever met had missed him, but his life was now filled with tons of little miracles.

Harry's parents had told him about their many friends but Harry had never really believed that they had cared about him until now.

As Harry gazed out into the dark fog he suddenly caught a glimmer of light. Harry leaned forward and squinted. Surely he didn't just imagine it?

There it was again. A faint glow of yellow appeared. Suddenly more light appeared from out of the mist.

Harry's eyes widened as he gazed upon the castle. It was magnificent. Sure, Harry had seen the pictures in books, but it didn't compare to the real thing.

The castle was much larger than Harry originally thought. It had a certain elegance to it. As they got closer, Harry could feel a comforting magical blanket around him, as if Hogwarts herself was trying to welcome him.

Lily and James gazed at their son in joy as his eyes lit up. This may not have been the way they thought Harry would go to Hogwarts, but it was magical all the same.

...

Harry felt incredibly overwhelmed. The castle was huge. As Harry walked to the great hall with his family, he tried to take it all in. There were hundreds of staircases, and doors. Thousands of corridors filled the building, some looking endless, others leading nowhere. He knew that he would get lost at least a dozen times.

Loud chatter brought Harry back to the present. He glanced at his father. "I thought the students wouldn't be here yet?" James furrowed his brows for a moment. "Today's the first day of term. Oh, by the way." They stopped outside of the double doors that let to the great hall. "Dumbledore sort of told the media about you being alive."

Harry blinked. "Okay…?"

Lily cut in. "Which means that you are famous." Harry's eyes widened. "Famous, wh...what do you mean famous." He demanded. James and Lily shared a look. "Well…" Lily began but got cut off by Sirius. "Your parents are quite well known." He said bluntly. "When you supposedly died, the whole wizarding world knew about it. Now that you're back…" He spread his hands. "Well, you are the talk of the media."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Great. So…" Sirius put his hands on his godson's shoulders. "So be prepared to have everyone look at you."

And with that comforting thought Sirius nudged Harry into the Great Hall.

…

Silence. Absolute silence. Harry glanced around awkwardly. There were 4 tables in rows full of students who gazed at Harry. They all pointed to the front of the room where a magnificent table stood. _This must be the Head Table._ Harry thought as he looked upon the staff of Hogwarts.

Remembering that they were to sit at the Head Table. Harry started walking forward with his family behind him. As soon as he moved, the students seemed to have come out of their trance like state and turned back toward their tables. They all huddled together and hissing whispers filled the hall. Every few seconds they would glance back toward Harry but turn away when he caught their eye.

Harry, feeling incredibly uncomfortable, began to quicken his pace. Dumbledore stood as he approached and and shook his hand. He beckoned the Potters and Sirius to stand by him.

A hush fell over the hall as Dumbledore raised his arm. "As I'm sure you all are aware…" He began. "Aurors James Potter and Sirius Black are here to solidify the protection in Hogwarts. Lily potter will be helping in the hospital wing in case of any emergencies. Harry Potter is here to help me with a project of sorts. He will not be a student so he is not required to attend classes. Though I do hope that you all will welcome him."

Harry turned away as hundreds of eyes locked onto him. He sat down next to Sirius and James. A full plate suddenly materialized in front of him and Harry's eyes widened dramatically. James chuckled and leaned over. "Surprise you?" Harry shook his head. "I've never seen so much food."

* * *

 _ **A/N: Hey Guys. Sorry for the short chapter but I wanted to get this out there today. Thanks for reading.**_

 _ **-Aroissa**_


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